Tornado Alley (PROG)

[oldberkeley]

anything i think demeans president, Obama, is just fine with me even if it makes me look stupid

Psychologists have identified and studied something they call Negative Interpretation Bias. It's not new, very well-known in the field.

People with severe anxieties (OCD, for example) will consistently interpret ambiguous or neutral stimuli as negative even when a positive interpretation is readily available or even more logical.

A very simplistic example: we're talking, you yawn, I assume that you're attacking me because you think I'm boring rather than you're just tired.

It gums up the works, makes basic communication a chore, makes cooperation between individuals or groups unnecessarily difficult.

The entire conservative base seems to be suffering from this ailment, to the great detriment of our country.